Mashing together a collision of cultures, genres and styles into a melting pot of hip hop, dance hall and electro clash, Diplo became one of the most eagerly sought DJs and producers, famed for his collaborations with M.I.A., Santogold and Spank Rock. Taking his name from the Diplodocus dinosaur, Thomas Pemtz started his career DJ-ing while at college in Florida; running parties and club nights under the Hollertronix banner with friend DJ Low Budget, before his mix-tape Never Scared gained cult status and was named by the New York Times as one of the top 10 albums of 2003. Meeting Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A. while DJ-ing in London, the pair struck up an immediate musical understanding and Diplo went on to produce several tracks on her albums Arular, Kala and Maya, including the huge international hit Paper Planes. A renowned re-mixer for acts as diverse as Britney Spears, Radiohead and Beck, his signature sound is steeped in reggae, African rhythms and Latin influences and he has even released several compilations of Baile Funk, a form of Brazilian dance music that emanates from the Rio ghettos. For his record label Mad Decent, Diplo also collaborated with Santogold on the album Top Ranking: A Diplo Dub (2008) and released the remix collection Decent Work For Decent Pay (2009), before teaming up with Switch under the guise of Major Lazer for the record Guns Don't Kill People, Lazers Do (2009) - a celebration of Jamaican dance hall featuring local artists central to the scene. Artist biography compiled by BDS/West 10. All rights reserved